Whisky: Glenburgie 30 Year (1954), Gordon & MacPhail

Country/Region: Scotland/Speyside

ABV: 40%

Cask: Oak

Age: 30 Years (Distilled 1954)

Nose: Citrus rind, cotton balls, parchment, charcoal drafting pencils, black ink for calligraphy, short bread cookies, citrus sorbet, subtle floral lavender and lilikoi danishes.

Palate: Light to medium bodied, canvas, cotton, balsa wood, wood pencils, subtle tobacco and charcoal drawing supplies, herbal funk toward the end, yeasted bread dough and hops.

Finish: Very long and lingering with earth, tobacco, charcoal, paper, and lemon-zested donuts.

Score: 8*

Mental Image: The Bliss of a New Sketchbook

Narrative & Notes: The aroma opened a time portal allowing me to step again into my family’s art supply store. Soft and citrusy with hints of aromatic lavender and florals, the scent carried me through the aisles of charcoal drafting supplies, woody pencils, stretched canvas, cotton balls, and black ink and calligraphy supplies. The back room, which an art instructor once told me was their favorite hang-out spot, featured coffee, fruit-filled danishes, and shortbread cookies. Citrus sorbet and lilikoi were not part of my childhood but complemented the experience with familiar fruits. Light to medium-bodied, the flavor profile reprised childhood nostalgia with canvas, cotton, balsa wood, and old woody number two pencils. Subtle notions of tobacco smoke and charcoal drawing supplies drifted toward a slightly herbal, almost hoppy-yeasty funk at the end. The finish was long with mellow notes of earth, tobacco, charcoal, paper, and lemon zest donuts.

I asked my dear friend MuskOx on Reddit to help pick out a special dram for my 750th review on Reddit. Due to an accounting error, the honorable Muskox missed out on tasting something suitably excellent for his 750th review and was forced to slum it with a Port Ellen on review 751 instead. Not wanting to repeat the accounting mistakes of Muskox, Enron, or FTX, I carefully planned my experience for 750 by consulting with an expert.

Overall, this was a unicorn dram— like tasting a missing link in the evolution of Glenburgie. The flavor profile featured an “old school” restrained fruit, paper-like notes, and herbal-yeasty funk. I did not always care for that funky finish, but it played nicely into the nostalgia as it paired with tobacco and an occasional hint of menthol.

* I considered giving this a no score because how in the world does one score a dram bottled before they were born, which hits such a powerful note of nostalgia? I love drams that take you places with the first whiff of the aroma or drop on the palate, and this opened up a wonderfully sweet time warp. So take the score above with a grain of salt; I am in no way objective, I certainly never claim to be, but this was such an intensely personal experience— and with one of my absolute favorite distilleries.

Image Credit: Whiskybase